I’m in the e-bike business, so I obviously have a particular perspective on these things. But from where I stand, it looks like government support for the electric car business is all about supporting car manufacturers and has very little to do with the environment, or common sense for that matter.

ORONO, USA - When e-bikes first really emerged in the US market in the 1990’s, there were a handful of generic models available for sale. Merida, Currie, Yamaha, and Honda were all players, but no one model stood out from the others in terms of appearance, performance, and capability. People came into retail locations to buy an e-bike, not a Yamaha. Things have changed since those early says, but there’s still a long way to go.

Do you know that the ‘baby boomers’ of America, now aged between 50 and 70 years old, have bought more bicycles, and more expensive bicycles over their lifetime than any other group of people in history? This seems counter intuitive for the car culture of the USA to be so interested in bicycles.

The 21st-century equivalent of the cavalry has come charging in to rescue cities in China and South Asia in their battles against air pollution and global wrming. And it's also beginning to help out on the traffic-choked streets in London, New York, São Paulo and Los Angeles.